He added that terrorist attacks witnessed record surge in Kabul creating fear among residents. The Ministry of Interior (MoI) should devise strategy to bolster security in the capital city, he remarked.

A wounded wishing not to be named said they were attacked while offering evening prayers. “We were on the second Rekat when firing started. I heard someone saying no one should escape alive,” he recalled.

The attackers, he said used guns with suppressors then easily left the scene and later on he called the police.

Sher Ahmad, 70, who lost his 25-year-old son in the attack, said his son went to the mosque for prayers. “I ran to the mosque. Initially my son was injured but he succumbed to his injuries on way to hospital.”

Brig. Gen. Farid Afzali, head of Kabul police criminal department, said initial investigations suggested the attack was carried out by “a terrorist group”.